Expectations
by EmberFalcon
Summary: He expected her to hate him. Funny how she always exceeds his expectations.  fluff. spoilers for ME3
1. Expectations

He had expected her to hate him.

_'I mean,'_ he thought absentmindedly as he idly stirred his coffee. _'Isn't it _normal_ for her to hate me?'_ Though all things considered, there wasn't a thing about their situation that was normal; a Reaper invasion putting your relationship- or what was left of it- on hold wasn't normal. Serving on the same ship during said Reaper invasion while putting your relationship –or what was left of it- on hold was even less so. He took a sip of the bitter liquid, its warmth seeping into his chilled bones. It was incredibly late- the last of the crew, save for him, had finally tucked into their bunks for the night, the day's events heavy on their hearts as they attempted to exude a modicum of normalcy, tried to cope by means of routine.

Still, he had expected her to hate him.

How could she not? She had found him as soon as she could, sought for his comfort, his presence, and he denied her because he had been stubborn and hurt. Then after his temper had calmed and reason regained its voice within his head, he had attempted to apologize…but even then, his damned philosophy of, "leaving a way out," kept the tone of the letter neutral, hid the desperation he felt to fix what he had broken. Weeks of waiting like some lovesick teenager, constantly checking his omni-tool every chance he had for her reply, had left him wanting. Her silence was eating at him, slowly, and he wasn't entirely uncertain she didn't know she was doing it to him. Then, Alliance Brass picked up on usage of the Omega 4 Relay, and a sense of dread hit his gut. No one but her would even attempt flying near that damned thing, let alone use it.

But then she came back…

He had expected her to contact him then- to say something to him, anything, and maybe she had intended to. But then Hackett had a classified mission for her. Then everything went so horribly, horribly wrong. He had wondered if she was going to try and run- to try and defeat the Reapers before the Alliance roped her in to answer for her crimes. But when he saw the _SR-2 Normandy_ dock at the Citadel, saw her step out of the ship in her dress blues unarmed and allow them to arrest her, merely stared blankly at him when he cuffed her, he felt even worse for assuming the worst of her- _again_. He had tried to visit her while she was in holding in the hopes of speaking to her, but she wasn't allowed any visitation; even Anderson, despite being a Counselor, didn't even approach the hall she was kept in. So he skulked outside the _Normandy_ in the docking bay as security while it was retrofitted for Alliance standards. _'After all this,'_ he had sworn to himself. _'After all this, I'll talk to her.'_

But the end of civilization began with a trial.

He had been aboard the _Normandy_ when the Reapers had come. Joker had given him the cold shoulder the entire time, as did most of the original crew that remained- and who was he to fault them? Then Anderson was radioing Joker to grab Shepard. The entire escape was nerve-wracking. When they had begun their hasty departure, Earth was crumbling before their very eyes. He had turned at the soft hiss of the airlock opening. She stood before him, her dress blues covered in dirt, in ash, but her dog tags glinted rebelliously, defiantly, and she stared, visibly shaking, and never looking more lost in all the time he had known her.

He had demanded to know where Anderson was, even dared to order her to answer him, as if she was going to refuse him. _"I demand an answer, Commander!"_ Yes, because he outranked her now, didn't he? Now he had that weight…and he regretted saying it the moment the words left his mouth; the shock she had displayed before him, the one time he had seen her behave _humanly_ since Ilos, died off; her body stilled, her eyes filled with the desensitizing level of duty she had always shown, and she was no longer a frightened woman, no longer shaking or on the verge of tears.

She was Commander Samus Shepard.

"Admiral Anderson chose to stay behind and assist with the evacuation of civilians and personnel," she responded evenly. "He has officially reinstated me into the Alliance, and has chosen me as Captain of this ship, Major Alenko," she snapped a salute, and he had to suppress a flinch; there was no bitterness, no sarcasm in her tone, it was all business and no room for arguing. Suddenly, he was a meek Staff Lieutenant all over again, and this was another time, another life, and she was impossibly out of his reach.

After that, he was so fucking sure she was going to hate him.

But perhaps that would have been better; she didn't give him the cold shoulder, didn't ignore him when he was near her, and was even polite to him when they did speak. Horizon was something neither of them brought up; if she was still bothered by it, she didn't give any indication of it. She even went out of her way to see if he was comfortable, if he had everything the rest of the crew had, and was being seen regularly by Dr. Chakwas. He, for his part, genuinely didn't know how to act around her, so he wound up answering with short answers, simple answers that couldn't hold a double meaning- "yes ma'am," "Area secured, Commander," "aye aye, ma'am," things that couldn't be taken out of context. The click of the door to the mess hall broke him out of his reverie, and he turned to see who it was. Nerves knotted themselves in his stomach as Samus entered the room.

"Oh, Major Alenko," she seemed surprised to see him, but clicked the heels of her boots together and saluted him all the same. "Apologies, sir; I couldn't sleep, and came to make some tea." It was becoming increasingly hard not to cringe at her saluting him, referring to him only as, "Major," or, "Major Alenko," out of propriety, but it was just the two of them…and she was still being horribly formal.

"You…you don't have to salute me, Shepard…" he murmured softly, not bothering to conceal the turmoil he was putting himself through, fighting the internal battle he always did when it came to her. He watched as she cautiously allowed her shoulders to drop the slightest bit, though the guarded look in her eyes didn't falter.

"Very well, Major," she replied politely as she made her way over to the cabinet that held their mugs. Plucking one off the shelf and beginning to warm her tea, she sighed almost inaudibly and allowed her posture to slump for the briefest of moments, when she thought he wasn't looking. She straightened before he had the chance to blink, and the moment of her vulnerability was at an end. He nearly growled in frustration as he stood. He wasn't entirely sure why he stood, but he knew he was going to do something, say anything.

"Is that it? I'm just 'Major Alenko' to you now?" _'Swell, genius. That's your idea of attempting to fix things? How does she not _hate_ you?'_ she turned to him, clearly not expecting his question. He felt nauseated; he was saying all the wrong things, things he didn't mean to say in the way he was saying them. He didn't know what to say, how to undo what he had just done, and he wasn't entirely sure what the look on her face meant. Or what the look on his face meant, either.

"I…I'm sorry," she murmured, picking up her mug, holding it in front of her with both hands as if it were her shield. Tendrils of steam rose to caress her face, to tangle themselves in her hair, and Kaidan had never been more jealous of water vapors in all his life. And –_she_- was the one apologizing? "I…I was just under the impression that we were speaking strictly on professional terms…" she lowered her head slightly, staring at his shoes. "I didn't want to be too forward and talk out of turn." It would be easier if she weren't so goddamn _genuine_ about it. Why wasn't she screaming? Why wasn't she crying, saying she was disgusted by him? Why wasn't she making it _easy_?

"I…" he was at a loss for words. What could he say that wouldn't offend her, wouldn't scare her off? "No…I didn't mean…not like this…" he wasn't making any sense, and he knew it. And bless her, Samus didn't press him for an explanation. She simply stood there, in her ACUs, waiting patiently for him, like she had all the time in the universe to hear what he had to say. He straightened, his shoulders squared, jaw set. "I think we need to talk- about everything…about us."

He could have sworn he saw her shatter on the inside.

"Yes, of course…" her voice had dropped to a smoky whisper, but she didn't move, didn't lift her gaze from his polished combat boots. And he hated it. He hated that she wouldn't show him her sparkling amber eyes, wouldn't give him that small affectionate smile. She simply bit her lip- a nervous, albeit adorable habit of hers. She still didn't relinquish hold of her mug of tea, occupying herself by idly sloshing the tea bag around in the ever darkening liquid. He walked the short distance between them, placing one hand on the bottom of the mug, his other gently covering hers, still clutching the side of the mug.

He ignored the small stab of pain in his chest when her body jumped slightly at his touch, though considered it a small victory that she didn't try to pull away. With a soft sigh, he coaxed the mug from her and set it aside on the counter. She seemed unsure of what to do with her hands, and so opted to wring them in front of her idly- another nervous habit of hers. "Shepard, look at me," his voice dropped to the level of hers, as if they were afraid the entire galaxy could hear them if they spoke to loudly. She lifted her gaze to his chin, but dared not go further. He wondered silently to himself why she was suddenly so meek around him, so timid. This was not the Samus he was used to… "Samus," he tried again, and this time, she hesitantly met his molten brown eyes with her honeyed ones.

"Major-"

"_Kaidan_," he emphasized gently, and grimaced. Had things gone beyond repair for them…?

"…Kaidan," she corrected herself after a moment's pause. "I…I read your e-mail. I know what you said, and it weighed on my mind a lot…" there it goes again, his stomach knotting itself up. This conversation was beginning to smack of '_there's-someone-else-so-go-fuck-yourself-but-let's-be-friends'_ and he wasn't entirely sure that he was going to be able to handle it. "I honestly wasn't sure of what to respond with for a long time. I knew what I felt, but it was almost impossible to put into words," she crinkled her nose cutely as she contemplated what she was going to say next. "And then, by the time I knew what to say, Hackett had asked me on that mission…" she whispered, her head hung in shame. His thick brows drew together in a contemplative frown. "But after what happened, I figured you would hate me. I figured you would never want to have anything to do with me. So I focused on the trial. I focused on getting past that so I could fight the Reapers…"

"No!" It came out of his mouth much more harshly than he had wanted it to, but he didn't care. He couldn't have her thinking that he hated her for things she couldn't have possibly controlled, things she tried her hardest to prevent. She jerked her head up in surprise. He caught her hands in his and held them there. Why was she so cold? Now that he was touching her, he could feel the near imperceptible shivering she was doing. "I don't hate you, Samus. I could _never_ hate you. You've given your all for this galaxy and then some, and if things don't work sometimes, neither I, nor anyone in fucking existence can begrudge you for it." He implored her to understand what he was saying, to know that he couldn't change his feelings for her no matter what he tried to do. Her expression softened into a look of relief after a few long moments.

"I…thank you, Kaidan," her voice held all the warmth of another lifetime ago, when things were simple and she outranked him and the end wasn't beginning before their very eyes. He gave her the same half smile he did when she first woke after Eden Prime.

"There's just one more thing..." feeling emboldened by her improved mood, he took a deep breath before he took the plunge. _'Will you leave yourself a way out again, Alenko? A way out that you'll lose her in?'_ He gave her hands a squeeze. "You never answered my question: what am I to you?" There. It wasn't perfect, but it wasn't an accusation; it was a simple question that he desperately needed the answer to. He felt her body stiffen.

"I don't want to complicate things with you and the doctor you've been seeing-"

"I stopped seeing her, Samus," she looked genuinely surprised by that. "After I saw you again, I realized that, as nice of a girl as she is, I was really only attracted to her because she _didn't_ remind me of you, and at the time, I was still grieving over your death…" his voice broke, and he cursed himself for wording it like that when she gave him a look filled with such sorrow and sympathy that it was almost tangible.

"I'm so sorry, Kaidan…" she whispered, closing the distance between them and wrapping her arms around his waist. He shivered pleasantly when she settled her head into the crook of his neck, her lips accidentally brushing his skin as she spoke, "I never wanted to hurt you. I love you…I would do anything if it meant you wouldn't hurt anymore," his arms didn't hesitate to find their way around her, clutching her as close to him as he could. She was here, where he had ached for her to be for the last three years, and he didn't want to move again. He kissed her brow softly, a hand lifting to stroke her hair.

"Then be with me," the words were out before he could stop them, but he didn't regret them one bit. After months of tip toeing around his feelings for her, there was no hiding them anymore. She looked up at him as he continued, though he refused to so much as loosen his hold on her, "It won't be like it used to be right away…I want to take this slow. I want to do this right. And I want to stay with you until the end because I love you. But I won't if that's not what you want. Nevermind the galaxy. Forget regulations. Just tell me what you _want_ to do, Samus." He knew her too well; he knew she would try to be selfless and say that saving the galaxy would have to come first, so he wasn't going to give her the option. He's left himself no way out, for the first time in his life, and he has never been more terrified of the decision of one woman.

"I want to be with you. No matter what, I just want to be with you," she reached up and kissed his cheek before settling back into his arms. He pressed his lips to her neck and resumed stroking her hair. A tranquil silence hung between them for what seemed like an eternity. He felt more than heard her murmur, "It won't be easy…there are still things we need to work out…but I haven't been this happy in a very, very long time, Kaidan…" he smiled against the skin of her neck, feeling more content than he had felt since the original _Normandy_ was destroyed.

"I know, Samus…and I couldn't be happier," reluctantly, he loosened his hold on her just enough to look her in the eyes. "It's late, and we need to sleep- I hear Tuchanka isn't going to be a cakewalk," he grinned, playfully nuzzling his nose into her scalp. She laughed softly under her breath and squirmed her head away.

"Oh, it's not so bad after you head butt a Krogan," she smiled as he quirked a brow at her.

"Now _that_ is a story I will have to hear another time," her smile widened slightly.

"Now Major, are you saying you're going to debrief me in private?" she tapped him on the nose playfully. He grinned lopsidedly at her.

"Perhaps. I expect a full report tomorrow at 2300, Commander," her expression softened, and he only just noticed how tired she really looked.

"Goodnight, Kaidan, I love you," she reached up on her tip toes and kissed his forehead to sweetly he felt the burn of unshed tears. It was as if it had confirmed that none of this was some wonderful dream, and it made him want to weep. But he simply held her close one last time for the night.

"I love you, too…" he hated her leaving his arms, and felt a longing as she walked out into the hallway, but knew not to go after her; they had taken a step in the right direction, and while what they had wasn't entirely repaired yet, it was still theirs.

He had expected her to hate him.

Funny how she always manages to exceed his expectations.


	2. Broken

"Welcome to the new _Normandy_, Major Alenko," he flinched when she spoke to him so briskly, though he couldn't find a reason to blame her. He had this nasty habit of doing and saying the worst possible things at the worst possible times to the last person in the world he ever wanted to hurt. It had literally been hours since they each had to stare down the barrel of each other's guns, and his throat clenched at the thought that all he did afterward was tell her he felt that she would have killed him if he hadn't backed down first.

Hell of a thing to say to the one you love.

She had handled it with grace, had reassured him vehemently that she could never hurt him, and had even readily accepted his request to return to fighting alongside her just a few minutes ago. But now…now it was back to business. She was his Captain, giving him the tour of her ship, and he was meekly following behind her. No one shot him a dirty look, hell, he was even greeted warmly by a few people- Joker, Garrus, and Liara to name a few. But Samus…she hadn't called him by his name since the incident at the Citadel. She gave him a brief tour of the CIC, then led him to the elevator to show him to his quarters. As the elevator doors closed behind them, he turned his head to look at her, cringing at how she kept looking straight ahead, refusing to meet his gaze.

"…Commander…" he wasn't sure what he was allowed to call her at this point…he wasn't sure if he was even allowed to call her 'Shepard'…but he needed to try and fix this…again. He needed to at least see to it that she didn't hate him, that she could at least forgive him, if only a little.

She gave him a sideways glance, still not turning her head. "Did you have a question, Major?" She mentally cursed. This damned elevator was taking far too long. It never too this long! He looked…broken. Her heart went out to him, but she wasn't going to give in to him, not yet. He needed to know that he had hurt her more than he ever had before. He needed to see what he did to her.

"About what happened-"

"I felt we spoke enough about it."

"Do you hate me?" She almost didn't hear his whispered question, and it caused her to blink in surprise. She supposed it was a fair question, but at the moment…she wasn't sure what to feel about the situation. She loved him, oh Maker did she love him with all her heart…but still…she felt…shattered.

"I honestly can't answer that right now, Major," she replied, still not facing him, not needing to, to know that he was staring at her with a pained expression. "I don't know how to feel about a lot of things right now."

"Samus-"

"_No_." She startled even herself with how much force she had put behind that one word despite it being said in a soft, cracked voice, but she wasn't going to regret it, not now. "You…all of _this_," she angrily swept her hand in front of her. "All of this isn't _okay_, Major. A soft word and a meaningful stare won't make this problem go away." She regretted turning her head to look at him. The pain in his eyes forced her to turn her head back as the door slid open. She straightened her shoulders, her tone returning to the professional she always was. "Now, this is where the crew quarters are, but…" she trailed off, frowning as she examined the number of beds. "…They're all full." A sense of dread, of sheer and utter _panic_ hit his gut. If there wasn't a place for him to stay…it might be all she needed to say that she didn't want him there, that he should jump ship next time they land. He suddenly felt nauseated at the thought that they would part like this because of his stupidity- _again_. "I mean, there's the starboard observation deck…"

"That's fine," he answered tightly. Hell, he didn't care if he had to sleep in the hallway, just as long as he could stay by her side, to help her and be near her, even if she couldn't find it in her to forgive him again for being such a fool. She raised a brow at him.

"You haven't even seen it yet, Major." Almost as if to avoid the argument, he turned and practically marched into the observation deck. He actually enjoyed it a little more than the crew's quarters; soft lighting, seats where he could read, shelves of books he _could_ read, couches he could sleep on, and a vast window looking out into space he could lose himself into. He turned to look at her as she entered the deck as well, though still kept a few feet of distance between them.

"I think this would be perfect. Does this room get much through-traffic?" She didn't answer at first. She wrapped her arms around herself, as if to protect her from all the hurt she felt inside. He wanted to be the one that was holding her, that was comforting her, but he had destroyed that chance he had. He had held her before all of this happened, when they were beginning to _heal_, but now…

"…None, but…I come here sometimes at night…" he heard her whisper softly. "When I can't sleep, I look at the stars…but I can do that somewhere else…" she looked down at her boots.

"No, you don't have to do that…you could still come here if you can't sleep…" he realized what he was unintentionally implying and he frantically tried to explain, "I mean, I just…" he sighed and tried to start again. "I'm a pretty heavy sleeper, Commander. If you need to come down here to look out at the view on nights you can't sleep, it won't bother me. And if you need to talk to someone, I won't care if you wake me up to do so." Her posture softened slightly, and she actually managed a weak smile.

"…I'll keep that in mind, Major." Before he had the chance to hope that was a step in the right direction, she spun on her heel and began to leave.

"Commander!" She stopped, but didn't turn around. He hesitated a moment. "I…I just wanted to thank you. For letting me come back on the _Normandy_…for…for everything."

"You're welcome, Major." She walked away, still not looking him in the eye.

She didn't have to for him to see how much he had broken her.


	3. Shatter

The anguish in his eyes haunted her.

When she closed her eyes, she saw him staring at her with as much love as there was pain in his body, reaching out but not knowing if he could touch her, if he should touch her. When she went about her business, his presence was overwhelming, his biotics humming such a sad tune that her biotics would whisper of her ache for him, for his comfort. He had been in her squad for weeks now, and had taken residence in the observation deck. He didn't push things with her, didn't demand she make a decision, barely talked to her at all when she didn't initiate the conversation.

For her part, she rarely spoke with him.

It wasn't for lack of a want to…she wanted to be able to talk freely with him, to be able to use his shoulder and have him hold her like they used to be in another life, but things aren't so simple anymore. She couldn't just rush to his sleeper pod and drag him back to her quarters when she has a nightmare so he can kiss and caress them from her mind, so he could fold her in his arms and she could feel safe. Because things aren't so simple anymore.

Because there are the barrels of two pistols in the space between them.

Her breath came out in a huff that flipped her bangs out of her eyes. She isn't getting sleep tonight, that much was certain; he's waiting there behind her eyelids, and it makes the ache in her chest almost tangible. She slipped out of bed with ease and left her quarters. She hesitated only a moment before she pressed the button for the crew deck in the elevator. As the elevator shifts to comply with her input, she lets her body slump against the cool metal walls. She idly wonders when the lights in the elevator began looking like her interrogation cell back on Earth. Vaguely, she knows she shouldn't ask herself questions she already knew the answer to. The ride is mercifully short, and she pads off, still barefoot, heading to the kitchen to make a cup of tea. The dispenser gurgles as it prepares her drink, her favorite blue, chipped _SR-1_ mug sitting underneath it expectantly. She chewed at her bottom lip, throwing an inquisitive glace toward the observation deck.

The door was unlocked.

She frowned, remembering him mentioning he would lock the door whenever he was sleeping. It was never a problem for her- being the commanding officer, she could easily override his lock down of the deck if she needed to enter, but fact remained…he could still be up. She faintly heard the dispenser conclude filling her mug with her favorite beverage, so she clicked it off. She curled her hand around the mug and took an experimental sip. Warmth flooded her chest as the soothing liquid made its way to her stomach. Perhaps it was the lack of sleep, maybe it was her desperation for comfort, for acceptance, but her feet were already carrying her to the observation deck before she had time to talk herself out of it. Her hand hovered over the holo-lock on the door with indecision for a moment before finally opening the door with a soft hiss. The temperature is cooler in here, probably to help with his migraines, but she ignores the chill crawling through her. The only thing that lit the room was the starlight spilling out from the vast emptiness of space. She spotted him almost instantly, lying on one of the couches directly in front of the window, blanket cocooning his body, his chest rising and falling steadily, his expression troubled, even in his sleep.

Washed in this pale light, he stole her breath away.

She set her mug down on the table beside his makeshift bed as quietly as she could, easing herself onto the couch, by his feet. For a few moments, she contented herself with simply staring out into space, letting her thoughts consume her. His presence was comforting, even if he wasn't aware she was beside him, and it made dealing with things…a little easier…but the dead rested even less than she did.

"_Had to be me…someone else might have gotten it wrong."_

"_Do not grieve for me, Shepard."_

"_You know it's the right choice, LT."_

"_Honey, your father and I love you so much…"_

"_Michelle, get Samus to the safe house! Go!"_

She covered her ears with her hands, as though it would make the dead stop whispering. Mordin…Thane…Ashley…her parents…they all died either protecting her, or helping her, and they all died because they were close to her. She herself died and lost two years of her life, of the life she and Kaidan could have had, the lives she could have saved if she had been better, had been stronger, faster even. She brought her legs up on the edge of the couch and curled into herself, fighting back the tears she swore she wasn't going to shed. She didn't deserve to cry, not after so many had given their lives to help her get to where she is today. The thought only made it harder to keep her sobs quiet, the dam finally breaking under the relentless stream of agony she was experiencing. She bit her lip, hoping her crying wouldn't alert him that she was there. She should leave…when she can compose herself enough to quietly escape, she should leave…

She tensed when she felt strong arms gently pull her toward a warm body.

"Samus…?" he asked sleepily, nuzzling into her neck. She didn't answer him, afraid she would start crying even harder. All he heard was a faint sniffle in reply. He frowned, his worry overriding any apprehension of their relationship because at the moment, she needed him. He winced, his migraine making it difficult to stay sitting up- the room began to spin, nausea setting in. "Come here…" he murmured as he lie on his side, pulling her down with him to curl around her and bringing the blankets over her as well. She went rigid, and he silently cursed; he didn't think of the implications his actions had, but he didn't want her think he was trying to take advantage of her, not ever. "The migraine…makes it hard to sit up right now." The tension in her body eased somewhat, and he felt her nod before she cuddled closer, hesitantly placing her hands on his chest. Her fingers felt like ice through the fabric of his shirt. "Now…what's wrong? Let me help, please…" he opened his eyes again, his breath catching at the ethereal glow the starlight gave her; her blonde tresses fell around her like a halo, her pale ivory skin bathed in the soft light, her normally sapphire eyes almost ice blue, sparkling with unshed tears.

His angel, always.

"…Kaidan…" she chewed her lip as her throat tightened again. His expression softened, and he reached up a hand to stroke away her tears, waiting patiently for her to talk. "I…everyone around me gets hurt…or worse…and I don't know how I can keep everyone safe and end this damned war…" the tears were falling; unbidden, cascading down, some slipping over his hand still holding her cheek, and in that moment, the tension between them didn't matter to him- she was breaking before her, and all he could do was gather her in his arms to try mend her once she had completely shattered. With a faint shudder, she came apart in his arms, sobbing quietly into the crook of his neck. She wept for her lost loved ones, she cried for the people still struggling to survive, she sobbed for the people she couldn't save, and she shed tears for her, for them, for everything keeping them apart, hoping her tears would just wash it all away. He clutched her closer, his fingers weaving through her hair, his lips peppering kisses into her soft locks, murmuring words of comfort, words of endearment, not knowing if he was helping or hurting the situation.

Neither were sure how long it lasted, but with a final sniffle after what felt like an eternity, Samus pulled back, scrubbing at her eyes frantically. "I'm sorry…" she whispered, her voice hoarse from crying. He shook his head, instantly regretting doing so- his migraine hadn't left him quite yet. Waiting for the dizziness to subside before he chanced speaking, he gave her a reassuring squeeze.

"There's nothing to apologize for," he paused a moment, closing his eyes. "But…I owe you several apologies…and much more than that…" she frowned when his face twisted into a look of pain, his eyes still closed. He felt her fingertips slide from his clothed chest upward, gliding up his neck to hold his face in her hands. He leaned into them, his eyes still closed. If he looked at her now, he would lose all of this nerve. "I should have never doubted you. Ever. And that's all I did from the moment we met up on Horizon," he let out a shaky sigh. "I shouldn't have ever let you leave my arms that day. Before then, I had dreamed every night of what I would do if I was given another chance to be with you. I was given two- Horizon, and the Citadel. I squandered both because I couldn't break away from an idealistic standpoint long enough to look at the big picture…" his voice cracked, as it was now his turn to fight back the tears pooling at the corners of his eyes. "I didn't want to see that everything around us was falling apart. So I pinned my mistrust in everything else on you. That should have never happened…not you…never you…" he could only whisper, mortified that a few tears managed to leak out from his tightly closed lids. His migraine was only getting worse, the pain near excruciating, almost enough to make him black out. His breathing was shallow and quivering because his chest ached from trying to breathe under the weight of his guilt. His eyes burned because they had forgotten how it felt to shed tears.

Everything hurt because nothing was right.

"Shh…Kaidan…" her expression softened, knowing that he was hurting both physically and emotionally. His face was ashen and despite his body feeling so warm, he was shivering slightly, his hands shaking as they reached up to grip hers. "It's okay…everything's okay…" she cooed to him, squeezing his hands gently.

"I'm sorry…I'm so sorry…" he breathed, letting go of her hands to hold her against him again, trying to anchor himself so he could attempt to calm himself. He felt her run her fingers through his hair as she wrapped her other arm around him.

"I know, Kaidan…I know…just relax…" Her voice started to sound muffled, as though he was underwater and she was calling out to him from the surface. He felt the dread hit his gut; he was blacking out from the migraine, and he knew it. But he still had so much he wanted to say…so many things he had to atone for…he opened his eyes, though he realized a second too late that he shouldn't have. His vision was growing fuzzy, distorted. He opened his mouth to try and form the words while he still could.

"Samus…" his speech slurred, and he knew he didn't have much time left to stay conscious. So did she; she had been there for him when he blacked out from a migraine before, when they were together. She pressed a finger to his lips to silence him, knowing talking would only make it worse.

"Rest, Kaidan. Everything's going to be okay," she watched as his eyelids finally grew too heavy for him to fight, his entire body going limp as the last of his consciousness slipped from his fingers. For the longest time, she simply lie there beside him, fingers brushing over his cheek, watching over him. It was silly- she knew he wasn't going to get nauseous or injure himself, but she couldn't tear herself away. Seeing what his guilt has turned him into, seeing all of the pain he has hidden from the galaxy for the last three years finally manifest and literally reave the energy from his body shed some light on his side of the situation, and she finally understood. He hadn't changed his feelings for her ever…everything he had known in the world had spun on its axis within the course of three years; the level of immature blindness government can stoop to, the fragility of existence, even the finality of death had lost the meanings he had attached to them when they had first met, and none of them were a solid entity he could point at and demand answers from. There was really no other face he could associate all of it with but her- at the end of it all, she was the common denominator in the one equation in the galaxy he couldn't solve because it demanded to be divided by zero. While she had tried to make sense of readjusting to life again, he had to accept that everything he ever knew was a lie and had to watch it crumble around him alone. How could she condemn his actions, his projecting onto her, when she knows he's only ever felt human around her?

They had both been lost.

"Sleep well, dearest," she smoothed his hair away from his eyes, the action softening his features from the deep frown he had held since he had awoken to her crying. "Rest, and know I love you…" she murmured sincerely before pressing a kiss to his forehead. She heard him sigh softly, but he otherwise didn't regain consciousness. She doubted he was even aware enough to know what she had said, but at least he was getting rest, something she knew he wasn't getting enough of, if the heavy bags under his eyes were any indication. She carefully slid from the couch and stood, plucking her mug from the desk as she tip-toed out. Drinking the now considerably cooler tea, she contemplated how she was going to resolve things between her and Kaidan officially, to actually tell him that she forgave him and that she loved him, when an idea hit. A smile playing on her lips, she hurriedly cleaned and stored her mug before heading back to her quarters. She had, after all, left her omni-tool on her desk.

Hours later, Kaidan awoke. His eyes opened groggily, surveying the observation deck. His migraine had gone, at least, but his body ached. It always did when he regained consciousness from blacking out, though he supposed it was better than another migraine. He blinked the remnants of sleep from his eyes before he recalled the night's events. He snapped to a sitting position, frantically looking next to him for Samus, but only the empty space beside him greeted his eyes. He frowned in thought, wondering when she left and why, when he noticed his omni-tool pinging on the table beside him. Curiosity getting the better of him, he reached over and plucked its resting place. The holo display flickered to life and he opened his messages, feeling the air leaving his lungs when he saw that it was from Samus. He smiled warmly when he read the subject out loud to himself.

"Morning, sleepyhead…" he chuckled quietly despite his fear of what her message could say before opening it, opting to read the rest silently to himself, preferring to think of it in her voice rather than his.

'_A little less configuration, a little more "Yes, dear," okay? –Samus'_

She had a knack for making him forget how to breathe, he'll give her that. It was something she had told him jokingly on the old _SR-1_, when he had always checked the ship's configurations on an almost daily basis. After the fight with Saren, they had both relaxed on the regulations a little more when it was just the two of them in engineering. She needed his help reaching for something in the cabinet, and he was still fixing something when she had said it. It was a little joke between them after that for whenever something had been bothering him, her way of saying that he needed to relax and that she loved him without actually saying it. In light of the current situation…it felt strangely soothing to have her tell him that, even if it was in a message. He leaned forward, his forearms on his knees as he thought about how he was going to go forward, when a thought occurred to him- in all the time they had been together…he had never taken her on a date…

Samus had been tightening the last buckle on her uniform when her omni-tool beeped to inform her she had a message.

'_Hey Shepard,_

_I don't know about you, but I could sure use a little breather. Next time we're out on the Citadel, let me buy you dinner. We should try Apollo's. It's that little restaurant in the courtyard overlooking the Presidium._

_-Kaidan'_


	4. Taking my Time

A few days later, she found him at Apollo's Café, sitting at a table and looking as though he was trying desperately to keep his mind off their impending date he had asked her on. _'Probably fears the worst. All things considered, can't say I blame him…'_ she thought to herself, idly smoothing the black leather of her dress. She was grateful that Dr. Chakwas had held onto her old dress from when she aided Kasumi in recovering Keiji's graybox. _'That PVC dress in my closet that Traynor found…'_ she suppressed a shudder at how downright unflattering that dress looked. Traynor had good intentions in adding that to Samus' wardrobe, but…this one was more…stunning, to say the very least. She sauntered over to the empty spot at the table he was sitting at, her black lace pumps clicking with each step. She stopped just before the chair he was occupying.

"Kaidan…?" she asked hesitantly when he didn't notice her still. He jumped a little in surprise before facing her. He opened his mouth to say something, but his jaw simply hung there as he gawked a few moments. She held back a grin as she watched him try and compose himself. After a few moments he cleared his throat and attempted to keep himself occupied once more, staring at a holo-menu for the café.

"Surprised this place can still get supplies for a menu like this," he commented as she eased into a chair with practiced grace.

"Maybe it's better if we don't ask how…or where," they both shared a chuckle as Kaidan took his eyes off the menu and looked back at her. His eyes still smoldered as he looked her over.

"I'm glad we're taking the time to do this…I could use a sanity check," a soft smile was playing on his lips. Samus couldn't keep the wry smile from her mouth, try as she might.

"Things have been pretty crazy." But he suddenly seemed a thousand miles away and yet here all at once, his gaze drifting off towards the view of the Presidium. His smile faded into a pensive stare into eternity.

"You know, my life flashed before my eyes on Mars, and…there weren't enough moments like this…with people I care about…" his normally amber eyes clouded over. He regretted not trusting her, not loving her in the way she deserved for the last six months that she had been alive again. He hated that he had pushed her away, feared that he had finally pushed her too far-

"How are you feeling these days?" She asked sincerely, though her arm twitched as she resisted the urge to reach out and take his hand. She was still unsure of where she stood with him, after all that had happened between them. She lifted her eyes when he seemed to try and shake his thoughts from his head, his smile coming back, if a little more muted.

"Feeling up to whatever the Reapers throw at me- and grateful that I could convince you to take half a second and relax," his tone was only half teasing and she smiled a little guiltily at that. She had thrown herself so deeply into her work, everyone kept telling her that she needed to come up for air, as Garrus had put it. She leaned her forearms on the table, lacing her fingers together to keep them from reaching out to him.

"Yeah," she murmured quietly, bracing herself for what was to come, "I think it's a good time for us to have a heart-to-heart," trying desperately to lighten the mood, if only to soften the blow should he reject her, she teasingly added, "what are you drinking?" He chuckled quickly, though tried to ignore the warm feeling in his chest when her tone became almost flirtatious. It brought back memories that had been haunting him at night and day equally, but he grinned at her nonetheless.

"If you're trying to butter me up, it might take a nice steak sandwich, too," she quirked an eyebrow at him in amusement.

"So…?" His grin widened when he saw she wasn't taking no for an answer. His eyes went back to the menu as he brought up the alcohol choices to scan over.

"Shot of whiskey and a good old Canadian lager," he snapped his eyes back up to her in inquiry. "Think they have it?" She snorted as she shot him a flat look over her own menu.

"More likely to have Batarian Shard Wine," she picked a sweeter wine of Asari origins off the menu and set it down. Kaidan must have made his choice, because his menu was already on the table as he laced his hands together.

"At my parent's place in Vancouver," he chuckled nostalgically. "Drank more than a few beers on their balcony, looking over English Bay," his smile faded, a somber expression replacing it as his voice dropped almost to a whisper. "Yeah…beautiful view…" he stopped to look at her, his voice more normal as he pulled himself out of his reverie. "You know what, though? I feel good about our chances."

"Yeah?"

"Yeah," he replied, though with less conviction. "Lets me sleep better at night." He didn't miss the frown of worry that creased her brow, her head tilted slightly the way it always used to when all she had to worry about with him was his migraines. Given his most recent blackout incident, she tended to carry his migraine medicine around with her, just in case. She had already suspected he was having trouble sleeping, but it still worried her that he wasn't resting enough.

"You not sleeping, Kaidan…?" He flinched, knowing he didn't deserve her concern, or the caring look she was giving him. It was stupid for him to ask for her love now, but he needed her to know his feelings, to know that they've only grown stronger since they were last together.

It didn't mean he had to feel brave about it.

"Maybe a little restless," he shifted uncomfortably, avoiding her gaze, though he still felt it, that soft, concerned look in her sapphire blue eyes that he drowned in so many times before. He sighed quietly to himself. _'If you leave a way out again, you'll lose her in the most absolute sense.'_ His mind warned him. _'She won't put up with you forever if you keep that up.' _He swallowed the lump in his throat before explaining, "the war isn't all that's keeping me up at night…I wonder about us." He still hadn't looked at her, trying so hard not to fall into old habits of only showing bits and pieces of his emotions. Mars taught him that life was a very finite and uncertain thing, and he couldn't squander what he had left wringing his hands in worry over what could happen.

"Us…" her tone was completely neutral, her expression unreadable, and it unnerved him, but he pressed on, for once his expression unguarded, his eyes telling her how he felt before he actually said it,

"I love you, Shepard. I always have," he paused, his gaze never breaking from hers as he continued, "I want to understand what this is between us…and make it real," suddenly out of steam, he signed, his head bowed with a soft sigh. "Well…that's what I want…" he lifted his head- a glutton for punishment, he must be- and looked at her directly. "What do you want?" He held his breath, his eyes scanning her face for any clue, any sign that she still felt anything for him at all. She smiled softly.

"I can't bury what I feel for you anymore…and I don't want to," he fought back tears of joy and he finally broke through that wall of tension between them as he took her hand in his, bringing it up to his face and pressing his cheek into her palm. She shivered pleasantly at the feel of his skin, the way his stubble lightly scratched her skin sent a jolt of pleasure crawling places it hadn't since they had last been together.

"And that…makes me so happy…" understatement of the century, but at this point he was fighting a lot of urges of several kinds. He wanted to cry, to kiss her silly, to drag her back to the _Normandy_ and lock them both in her cabin, and he found himself paralyzed with both elation and indecision. He still wasn't sure what she was ready for, and he would never push her, never again… "and there are benefits to that happiness…" still not sure if she wanted him to kiss her the way he _wanted_ to kiss her, he settled for pressing a lingering kiss into her palm, though the smile she gave him made him shiver in longing. The waiter was bringing their drinks over to them, and so he let her hand go with an almost embarrassed laugh. "But…more on that later," she arched a brow.

"Later? We need to get back to the _Normandy_ ASAP." He felt a rush of blood shoot straight to his loins at her implications…now he knew how much she wanted, and so the fun could begin.

"Ah, yeah, too late…our drinks are here and…I'm going to take my time," he replied with a smug smile. She knew instantly what his games were- she was on to him…but she could play along.

"What'd you call it? A sanity check?" he grunted affirmatively.

"Sanity check." Once the waiter left, she began to sip her wine delicately, raising an eyebrow inquisitively at him. She set her wine glass down after a moment, licking her lips._ 'It's official. Those lips are torture.'_ He squirmed a little. Since when did his uniform pants feel so uncomfortable?

"So," she drawled, and he felt a long forgotten heat pool at the base of his gut at how her voice had dropped into that breathy whisper that she _knew_ drove him mad. "Seeing as you and I have never technically been on a date before…how does a date with Kaidan Alenko end?" She rested a hand over his and laced their fingers together. As he was about to respond, she dragged her thumb nail against the inside of his palm, and he nearly hissed at a shot of blood jolted straight into his loins. It must have registered on his face more than he thought it had, because she smirked seductively at him, and that certainly wasn't helping things.

"Well," two could play this game. His eyes smoldered as he stared at her, and she felt herself grow warm with need, but managed to keep a steady face, for the most part. "Normally, I'd walk you to your door and kiss you goodnight before I headed home," he was trying his hardest to look innocent, but she wasn't buying it, oh no, not with him! "But…seeing as we both live on the _Normandy_…and considering we're both heading that way anyway-"

"Actually…" she tried not to grin. Oh, she was being so very unfair to him… "I have some business on the Citadel that I need to take care of. A Spectre mission here, a few item drop-offs there, and then I can come back to the _Normandy_," the crestfallen look on his face made her unsure of whether she wanted to postpone her missions, or if she wanted to openly laugh at his evident need for her. She stood, and his face turned into a full-blown puppy dog pout. She wasn't going to leave him hanging, but she would leave him _aching_- that much, she was good at. He rose, either to stop her or walk with her, she wasn't certain.

"Shepard-" she placed her hands on his chest, pressing their bodies as close together as she could. His arms didn't hesitate to wrap around her waist and hold her close. He hummed happily, having missed her being in his arms so much, it had left a literal ache inside him. Now, he felt…content, and he knew she did, too. She lifted her head so there was but a breath apart from them, her eyes inviting. "_Samus_," he breathed as he leaned in a little more. Just as their lips were about to touch, she giggled and ducked her head into his neck. "Hey-!" his protest died on his lips as he felt her kiss his neck, nipping at his pulse point. He moaned softly, his arms squeezing her closer. Just as he was about to pull the high collar of her dress back to return the favor, she pulled back, a devilish grin playing on those damned lips of hers.

"Don't worry, Kaidan…" she kissed the corner of his mouth, and slipped back too quickly for him to get a real kiss from her. "I'll meet you back on the _Normandy_ in a little less than an hour, love." His heart warmed at her new pet name for him, though it only added to his current…_frustration_. "I'm just going to…taking my time," turning his own words against him, was she? "But for now…I should go." As quickly as she had started this, she turned and walked away, her steps deliberately slow so her hips would sway just a little more than they normally would. He groaned in agony and need all at once as he watched her go.

She was going to be the death of him.


	5. Love

She was still smiling when she walked through decontamination to board the _Normandy_. She couldn't help but notice that her heels clicked particularly loudly, more so than usual, as she made her way into the CIC. Her smile dimmed as her eyes swept about the place, noting the lack of her crew. She shrugged, figuring they were all still on shore leave, and made her way to the elevator. After a few moments, the elevator hissed open, and she stepped inside, ordering it to go to her cabin before leaning back against the wall with a contented sigh. She hummed a tune softly under her breath as she waited, her good mood at an all-time high; she had managed to recruit both Hanar and Drell fleets, along with the entirety of the Spectre division for the war thanks to Kasumi's help, Cortez was beginning to move on from his grief, and she had managed to rekindle her relationship with Kaidan.

Needless to say, she felt accomplished.

Stepping off the elevator and entering her quarters, she kicked off her heels and made her way down the three steps into her bedroom with a soft sigh. She had planned to shower, maybe slip into something more comfortable before inviting Kaidan up like she promised she would. She reached behind her to begin unzipping the dress, when a warm, calloused hand stopped her.

"Need some help…?" Kaidan purred in her ear. She gasped in surprise when she felt him pull the zipper of her dress down, and she shivered pleasantly when she felt his warm breath against her skin. His hands were searing and soothing all at once as he slid the dress from her shoulders, pooling on the floor. His lips parted to mold into the crook of her neck, his hands exploring on their own. She could feel him press against her, his chest against her back- but wait, he was shirtless? Coherent thought left her as his hands traveled, one cupping her breast through her bra, the other trailing down to grip her hip and pull her closer. Her knees buckled.

"Kaidan…" she let out a breathy moan, her head falling back into him, giving his mouth better access to more of her skin. He hummed happily against her heated flesh, the hand on her hip slipping its fingers underneath her lace panties, leaving a scorching trail along her skin. His tongue swept along the junction of her neck, his kisses becoming lighter as they trailed up her neck. She turned sluggishly in his arms just in time for his mouth to find hers. He moaned against her lips, slanting his mouth to deepen it as they pulled each other closer. He dragged his teeth along her bottom lip, loving the low moan that escaped her when he did that. He had missed her. He had missed this…all of it. His heart fluttered at the thought that he was finally able to love her again the way he had ached to for the last three years. She stood back, idly wondering when she had leaned up on the tips of her toes, and grinned at his half naked form. "You planned this," she poked his bare chest lightly. It wasn't a question, but he felt he should answer anyway.

"Perhaps a little," he chuckled, kissing her slowly. "I like to be…" he nipped her neck, "…prepared." She shivered as he continued to let his hands wander, his fingers whisper over scars that were not there before, searching for scars that had long since been wiped clean. Her body told fewer stories now, but that's okay; he need only look into her eyes and see her soul to know what she had been through. That was enough. She laughed softly under her breath, letting her hands do a little investigating of her own, trailing down his back, tracing his muscles, the scars on his shoulders from the operations the doctors had to do to save him after Mars, the defined lines along his tailbone and sliding to his front in the space between them to begin undoing the buckle of his pants.

She stilled when his fingers hesitated over the scar at the base of her neck.

She flinched slightly, knowing the last time they were intimate, she was an engineer with no biotic abilities, but death…death left her a blank canvas for Cerberus to mold. She had awoken to find an L5x implant at the base of her neck, and all the abilities of a Sentinel. She felt him lift his head to look her in the eye, a reassuring smile on his face. He kissed her softly, briefly. "It doesn't matter…" he kissed her again. "You're still you…" and again. "…you're still mine," her heart warmed, and her tensions melted away. She smiled softly when their lips parted.

"Always will be," she murmured, her mouth finding the spot on his neck she knew drove him wild and began to lightly drag her teeth across the skin. He let out a shaky breath, his head lolling to the side as she continued to work on his pants. A wry smile pulled her lips from his neck, and he whimpered at the cessation of her ministrations. "You already have your boots off," again, not a question, but he couldn't hold back a sly smile this time.

"I did mention something about being prepared, didn't-?" his question was swallowed into a strangled moan when her teeth sunk into his neck. His eyes rolled back as he shut them, head falling back when she managed to push his pants down and glide a hand over his bourgeoning erection through his boxers. Those joined his pants in the puddle around his ankles, but he didn't pay it a single thought. She began to gently slide her fingers along the full length of him, her touch light and teasing. She hummed against his neck, pleased with the smoothness of the skin her hand was skimming across. "Samus…" he moaned heatedly, his hands fumbling with the clasps of her bra, desperate to feel all of her, to see all of her and know she was his. Succeeding in unclasping her bra, he practically tore it off of her, his hand sliding across her skin to curl around her breast, thumb skating over her nipple as his other hand fanned over the small of her back, bracing her to lower them to the bed.

"A little eager, are we?" Her witty, albeit breathy comment made him chuckle under his breath as he hooked a finger in her panties, tugging them off as he kicked his uniform pants and boxers off. His hands worked slowly, ghosting along her skin at an agonizing pace.

"Perhaps," he kissed her languidly, his tongue sweeping through her mouth in sensual patterns. "Or maybe…I wanted to get you here so I could take my time…" his voice hit the low octave that never failed to make her tremble in his arms. His slow torture continued, his kisses trailing lazily downward to her breasts, his mouth encasing a nipple, his tongue swirling around the hardened bead of flesh, making her back arch into him. Before long, she was mewling and keening, driving him wild with need. His hand traveled lower still, slipping between them, the pad of his thumb stroking her clit while two of his finger sunk into her searing hot core. Her mouth slackened into a silent moan as she gasped for air, thrusting her hips into his hand subconsciously.

Fantasies had done him no justice.

"Kaidan…" she mewled, her back arching languidly into his hard body. "I need you…_please_-!" He trailed kisses back up through the valley of her breasts, up her neck, and pressing his mouth to hers and kissed her desperately. He pulled his hand out of her and positioned himself, his need for her making his erection almost painful. He slid into her slowly, letting out a guttural groan as her velvet walls tightened around him. As he buried himself to the hilt, her clenching, her writhing was almost his undoing. He lowered the rest of his body, his chest pushing against her breasts, his arms winding themselves around her as he breathed into her ear,

"Just give me a moment…" he rocked his hips against hers when she tried to move. He kissed her slowly as he tried to steady himself. He slid out of her almost completely before he took up his agonizingly slow pace. She pushed her hips up, eager for more, desperate for more, but he pinned her down again. "Wait…please…" he ground out, waiting for the dots to leave his vision. "I…" he lowered his head, burying his face into the crook of her neck. "I want this to last…I want to…" he let out a shaky breath as he continued his pace. "I just want us to feel human again…" he felt the tightly wound muscles in her shoulders soften, and her arms grip him a little tighter. She pressed a kiss to his collarbone and smiled apologetically, taking one of his hands and lacing their fingers together.

"Then show me how," he closed his eyes, pressing their foreheads together, his pace neither ceasing nor increasing. He let go of her hand, and she wove it through his hair to pull his lips to hers. She kissed him slowly, hooking her leg under his to use as leverage to turn them so she was on top. Neither of them could bite down the moan that escaped them at the deeper penetration their new position granted them, and Samus had to curb her desire to let loose, knowing how important this was to both of them. She had to brace herself for a moment, to wait until the lightheadedness faded.

"Samus-" she leaned down and pressed a finger to his lips, smiling softly at him, hoping it would chase away the desperate look he had in his eyes.

"Shh…" she kissed him softly, her hand tangling in his hair again, her other trailing down his chest to soothe him. "Just feel…" she murmured against his lips as they connected with hers once more. She took up his pace, slow, sweet, and torturous for both of them. His head fell back, but he watched her through half-hooded eyes darkened with need, a wistful smile tugging at his lips as she made love with him, her blue eyes a sea of storms he never wanted to escape. She began to kiss and lick his neck, loving the sounds that escaped his throat as he desperately clung to her, pressing her body closer.

"Samus…" he breathed, gripping her hair and tugging her mouth up to his. "Oh, Samus…"his mouth reconnected his hers instantly, needing to feel her, to know he wasn't going to just wake up to find this entire day never happened. When they parted, she smiled at him, eyes sparkling with unshed tears. He looked at her, panicked that he had done something wrong, fearful that he had somehow hurt her in some way. "Why the tears, love?" he murmured, his thumbs stroking away the tears that fell. Her smile only widened as she let out a watery chuckle.

"Because I'm happy…because I'm with you…" she lowered herself into another kiss, murmuring a heartfelt "I love you," against his lips as they reconnected. His eyes welled in tears and spilled into his hair at the sincerity of her love for him, at how _alive_ she made him feel, how much he loved her in return. His hand cradled the back of her head, pulling her closer while he slanted his mouth against hers. Their rhythm hadn't ceased, and he felt the sweet pressure of his climax beginning to pull in the back of his mind. He rolled them so he was on top, hesitantly pulling his mouth from hers.

"I love you, too…always…" he began to increase his strokes. Nothing frenzied, not rushed, simply upping his tempo enough that his name became a hushed prayer spilling from those swollen lips. He peppered kisses into her hair, murmuring confessions of love, words of endearment, as they both rose in a crescendo to their climax. She cried out his name, clenching around him, her head thrown back in abandon as she found her release. Watching her coming apart so beautifully in his embrace, he plummeted into oblivion right after her, spilling himself deep into her center. Spent for the moment, he lowered himself next to her, turning them so he could hold her close, still inside her. They cuddled close, gulping for air as they shared a breathless laugh together, neither one having felt this complete, this content since they had last been together. He brushed his lips against hers again, their foreheads touching as they stared at one another.

"I…" she sighed happily. "I missed you so much…" he silenced her with a kiss.

"Shh…" his thumb smoothed her pout away. "I missed you, too…" he kissed her forehead. "But it's okay now," he shivered when her hand began to move soothingly up and down on his back. His stroked her hair, twirling the pale locks in his fingers. "From now on, I want to spend whatever time I have left loving you," she giggled and pecked his mouth playfully.

"You'll probably regret saying that," she teased, bucking her hips just enough to make him gasp. "Because I'm not done yet." She yelped in surprise when he turned them so he was perched atop her, staring at her hungrily, a devilish smirk playing on his lips.

"I was hoping you'd say that," he growled before he reclaimed her mouth with his.


End file.
